Enriching gas



May E12, 1931 E. A. IDBETERLE i LSMAOZ ENRICHING GAS Filed Jan. 19, 1924Y 2 sheets-sheet 1 May E2, 'WEL E. A. @Emma ENRICHING GAS Filed Jan. 19, 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 .Md NL INVENTOR WN GWN vte Fatenteel Eday l2, Ai231 .application filed January 19, 1924*.' Serial Ho. @87,221,

The present invention relates to enriching gas, and more particularly to enriching lean or relatively non-luminous combustible gas such, for example, as blue water gas, by an en 5 rching oil which is gasied to render the resultant gas more luminous or of higher caloric value.

lin manufacture of water gas for municipal distribution, the blue water gas is generated i by passing steam through incandescent beds of coal or coke, and the blue water gas is then passed through a carbureter together with an oil which is gasiied in the carbureter, the gasied oil serving to enrich the blue l water gas. l

rllhe present invention relates particularly to improvements in introducing and gasifying the enriching oil. The invention will be described as embodied in apparatus for gen- 2@ erating and enriching water gas, it being understood, however, that the inventionis not limited to its illustrated embodiment but may be otherwise embodied.

ln the drawings- Figure 1 is an elevation taken partly in section of apparatus for generating and enriching water gas;

Figure 2 is a plan View of such apparatus;

Figure 3 is an enlarged vertical cross section through a portion of the carbureter, being taken at right angles to the section shown in Figure 1 and s Figure a is a vertical section showing in detail the construction of the oil spraying nozzle. i

Referring to the embodiment of the invention illustrated in the dra-wings, numerals 2 and 2g indicate water gas generators of the usual type. rlhe blue water gas passes from the generator which is producing water gas through a carbureter 4, thence to asuperheater 5.- 'lhe carbureter and superheater are ypreferably heated by the blast gas froml the generator which is under air blast, and then waste blast a waste heat boi ot heat recovery. v

The generators 2 and 2a are duplicates, the subscript a being employed for parts o the 5@ generator 2n which correspond, to similar titi er 6 if desired for the sake ases may be passed through.

parts of the generator 2. The generators are operated alternately, one generator supplying Water gas while the other generator is under air blast. rlhe generators are of the usual type, having grates 7 upon which are maintained beds of coal or coke through which steam is passed to form the blue water gas.

When one of the generators, say generator 2, is generating blue water gas, the gas passes through the outlet pipe 8 through valve 9 into the chamber 10 of the carbureter 4 when the generator is operating on the up, run., When the `generator is operating on the down run the gas passes through the pipe connection 11 and valve l2 into the carbureter chamber 10. During the up run steam is admitted through the steam nozzle 18 beneath the fuel bed and during the down run steam is admitted through the steam nozzle 14 above the fuel bed. As will be readily understood by those skilled in the art, a generator of this type when it is generating water gas is irst operated on the up run for the rst third ot the generating time, down run for the second third and again on the up run for the last third ot the generating time.

While the generator 2 is supplying the blue water gas into the carbureter chamber 10, the generator 2E is blasting, that is, air is blown in through the air blast pipe 15 to bring the fuel bed to a condition of highly heated incandescence. rFlic valves in the pipe connections leading from the generator 2 to the carbureter chamber 10 are closedand the valve 16 is opened, allowing the hot blast gases to pass t rough the pipe 17 into a cornbustion chamber 18. Secondary air is introduced through the air nozzles 19 into the combustion chamber. The highly heated prod ucts of combustion pass through a plurality of tubes 20 across the carbureter, then then on the i downwardly through a Hue 21 and through a second set of tubes 22 into the chamber 23 at the base of the carbureter. rlhese tubes are made' of heat-resisting metal, such as nichrome or nickel steel alloys,I or calorized steelu Calorized steel, as will be readily understood by any one skilled in the art, is steel the surface of which is treated with aluminum to render it substantially nonoxidizable at high temperatures. A shield, preferably made of brick checker work 24, is interposed between the combustionchamber 18 and the upper bank of tubes 20 to shield the ends of the tubes from direct impact of flame from the combustion chamber.

The blue water gas passes from the upper receiving chamber l0 of the carbureter down and over the highly heated pipes 2O which serve to gasifyor fix the oil into a permanently gaseous condition. The enriching oil is introduced into the upper part of thechamber l0 through a nozzle 25 in the form of a linely divided spray. I have found that a most eliicient vaporization and mixing of the oil with the gas may be obtained by introducing the oil, together with a stream of gas, through the nozzle 25. The gas is supplied to the nozzle under pressure through a pipe 26 and the oil is supplied through an oil pipe 27. The gas passes through the mixing chamber 28 in the end of the nozzle, which acts also as an aspirator to draw in the oil from the oil pipe 27. A stream of intimately mingled gas and finely divided oil is thrown from the nozzle 25 into the body of unenriched gas in the chamber 10.

hThe gas which serves as the vehicle for t e the oil is primarily mixed before its introduction into the main body ofthe gas, is preferably the same gas which is to be enriched, namely in the illustrated embodiment, blue water gas which is tapped off from the pipe which is conducting the water gas from one of the generators to the carbureter. As shown in Figure l, blue water gas. is taken from the main supply pipe through a branch pipe 29 to a compressor 30, which delivers it through a small storage tank 3l employed to reduce fluctuations, under pressure to the pipe 26 and the nozzle 25. The oil which is supplied through the oil pipe 27 need not be under pressure, since it is drawn into the nozzle y the suction or aspirating effect ofthe gas passing through the nozzle. The oil lines, therefore, need not be under pressure, which is an important safety factor. Serious accidents have occurred in gas plants when breaks have occurred in oil lines under pressure. In theform of apparatus illustrated the oil is not under pressure, and if a break occurs in the line the oil is not sprayed out and danger of conflagration or burns to the workmen is minimized.

While it is preferred to employ a portion of the blue water gas to be enriched, asthe gaseous vehicle with which the enriching oil is first mixed and introduced into the main body of the water gas, other gases, such for example as air, may be employed to mix with and introduce the enriching oil. Also the gas to be enriched may be air.

Not only is it much safer from an operatintroduction of the oil and with which h ing standpoint to inject the oil into the carbureter by means of a stream of gas under pressure, but I have found that a better and more intimate mixing of the oil and gas can be attained than is the case when the oil alone is injected into the carbureter chamber.

The blue water gas flowing through the main gas pipe into the chamber l0 passes, together with the secondary stream of water gas carrying the entrained atomized oil, down over the highly heated banks of tubes 20 which serve to gasify or fix the oil into a permanent gas.

In order to complete the into a permanent or fixed gas, the gas is passed through a piping connection 32 into thesuperheater 5 where it passes upwardly over three banks of heated tubes 33, 34 and 35. These tubes are supplied with blast gas carried into the superheater reter 4 through the blast gas pipe 36. The blast gas passes into'a combustion chamber 37 where. it is supplied with tertiary air through the air pipes 38 A brickwork shield 39 similar to the shield 24 is provided to protect the bank of tubes 33 from direct impact of the flames.

An important advantage of my method of supplying heat to the carbureting and supereating chambers is the fact that it is unnecessary to dilute the gas being treated. In certain processes heretofore proposed air in'limited amounts is supplied to the carburetor adjacent the upper portion thereof and this air supplies suflicient oxygen to burn a portion of the gas being treated. Such process, however, results in loading the gas with a large quantity of nitrogen, which forms a constituent of the air admitted for combustion. With my process, where the heat for 1 fixation is supplied by means other than the combustion of the gas being treated, the nitrog'en content of the gas is not increased.

The carbureted Water gas passes from the superheater through outlet pipe 40 to storage tanks or mains, not shown. If desired, a seal box may be used between the outlet 40 and the storage tank or gas main. However, since the process is a continuous one a seal box is not necessary and generally only the valve, 1

which is usually provided in such line, will be required. The blast gases from the superheater m'ay pass to a stack but are preferably conducted through a pipe 4l to the waste heat boiler 6.

In operating the illustrated apparatus, the carbureter and superheater are operated continuously. Gas is continuously supplied, drawn alternately from the generators 2 and 2?. The generator which is not supplyin gas is, of course, under blast', being heate up. The continuous'operation permits the carbureter to be maintained at` a substantially uniform temperature. This temperature can be 5 from the carbu` fixing of the oil exactly adjusted by regulating the'supply of secondary air through the air .pipes 19. The maintenance of a uniform temperature iS not only advantageous for the most eiicient gasifying of the oil, but conduces to longer wie ' life of the carbureter by substantially elimithe balance of the water gas from one of said generators, substantially as described.

ln testimony whereof I have hereunto set my .handa EDWARD A. DIETERLE.

ployed et utilizingthe blast gas from one l generator to heat the carbureter and superheater conduces to maximum thermal eciency ythe carbureter and superheater may be independently heated as, for example, from van independent gas producer or by other fuel.

While ll have illustrated the present invention as embodied'in a continuously operable -plant for generating and enriching @5 carbureter a stream of waterI gas, it will be obvious that the inven-A to other vtypes of gas plants. lt `is to be understood, therefore, that the present invention is'not limited to its illustrated embodiment, but may be otherwise embodied Within the scope of the following claims:

lclaim: l. Apparatus for enriching a gas, com= prising av carbureting chamber, means for passing the as and a vaporized enriching oil through t e chamber, tubes of bare heatresisting metal extending through the chamber, a combustion chamber for supplying highly heated products of combustion to the tubes, and flame shielding means between the combustion chamber and the tubes, substantially as described.

2. Apparatus for enriching a gas, comprising a carbureting chamber, a metallic heater in the carbureting chamber, a combustion chamber for the heater, and a llame shielding means between thel combustion chamber and heater, substantially as described.

3. Apparatus for continuously generating and enriching Water gas, comprisin a plurality of Water gas generators, a car ureter, means for continuously passing the major portion of the blue Water gas drawn alter'- nately from the generators directly to the carbureter, means for continuously supplying blast gas drawn alternately from the generators for heating the carbureter, and

means for continuousl injecting into the ely divided oil tion or certain features of it lmay be applied i 

